Runaway camel injures man; owner could face charges

Published: Friday, February 14, 2014 at 09:39 PM.

LOS ANGELES — A runaway camel injured a man and damaged a car Friday in the city of Palmdale in northern Los Angeles County. Officials said the owner of the animal could face charges.

The daughter of the injured man said her father was hurt when the camel stomped him as he tried to corral the animal.

“My dad … tried to catch it and it must have cornered him or something and it took off after him, bit him on the head and knocked him down and stomped on him,” Skylar Dossenbach told Los Angeles’ KCBS-TV. “He crawled under something and the camel tried to pull him out from under it.”

The L.A. County Department of Animal Care and Control said in a statement to KTLA-TV that the “alleged owner is known not to be permitted to have the camel. The camel will be held as evidence and will be in the care of the Lancaster shelter.”

A call reporting the camel, which broke loose about 8:38 a.m., came from a person in one of the cars that the animal charged, sheriff’s Deputy John Cereoli told the Los Angeles Times.

The camel was caught and penned up by about 9:15 a.m., Cereoli said.

Sheriff’s officials told KTLA that they would look into pursuing charges against the owner of the camel once he or she is found.

LOS ANGELES — A runaway camel injured a man and damaged a car Friday in the city of Palmdale in northern Los Angeles County. Officials said the owner of the animal could face charges.

The daughter of the injured man said her father was hurt when the camel stomped him as he tried to corral the animal.

“My dad … tried to catch it and it must have cornered him or something and it took off after him, bit him on the head and knocked him down and stomped on him,” Skylar Dossenbach told Los Angeles’ KCBS-TV. “He crawled under something and the camel tried to pull him out from under it.”

The L.A. County Department of Animal Care and Control said in a statement to KTLA-TV that the “alleged owner is known not to be permitted to have the camel. The camel will be held as evidence and will be in the care of the Lancaster shelter.”

A call reporting the camel, which broke loose about 8:38 a.m., came from a person in one of the cars that the animal charged, sheriff’s Deputy John Cereoli told the Los Angeles Times.

The camel was caught and penned up by about 9:15 a.m., Cereoli said.

Sheriff’s officials told KTLA that they would look into pursuing charges against the owner of the camel once he or she is found.

“It’s a little different than a horse, or any other livestock, due to it being an exotic animal,” county animal control Sgt. Chris Cirar told the station. “They would be required to have a permit.”